The present invention relates to motion-conversion apparatus, and particularly to apparatus for converting bidirectional rotary movements to unidirectional rotary movements. The invention is particularly useful in energy conversion apparatus, such as wave motors and wind turbines, for converting naturally-occurring energy to a useful form, and is therefore described below particularly with respect to such applications. The invention, however, is useful in many other applications, and is therefore also described below for purposes of example with respect to a measuring application for accumulating and measuring bidirectional movements of an object.
Naturally-occurring energy, such as the energy in the sea and in the wind, constitutes a vast reservoir of energy which has remained largely untapped to the present time despite the long-anticipated energy crisis looming in the future because of the depletion of fossil fuels and the pollution of the atmosphere produced by them. For example, the prior art is replete with descriptions of many different types of wave motors, e.g., as illustrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,145,885; 2,783,022; 4,319,454; 4,469,955; 4,718,231; 4,996,840; and 4,838,025. However, despite the long-felt need, such sources of naturally-occurring energy have remained largely untapped primarily because of the high installation expenses required to construct such apparatus as compared to the amount of useful energy that can be extracted by such apparatus.
Another area in which there has been a pressing need is in the measuring of bidirectional movements of an object. For example, automotive vehicles are commonly equipped with distance meters which measure the distance travelled by the vehicle. Since the vehicle is normally moving only in the forward direction, the distance meter normally measures only the distance travelled in the forward direction. However, there are applications where it may be necessary or desirable also to measure the distance travelled by the vehicle, or other object, in the reverse direction, e.g., for monitoring the extent of operation of a vehicle, such as a tank, for routine maintenance purposes.